Charlotte Edwards Cup T20 2022: All Matches June 4th - Wins for Southern Vipers and Western Storm

Charlotte Edwards Cup T20 2022: All Matches June 4th  - Wins for Southern Vipers and Western Storm

Southern Vipers v Northern Diamonds (Southampton)

Danni Wyatt and Georgia Adams’ sweet hitting made sure Southern Vipers completed the Charlotte Edwards Cup group stage with a 100 per cent record, while they ended Northern Diamond’s competition.

England opener Wyatt thrashed an exhilarating 35 off 16 balls before Adams all but finished off the job with 47 – with Vipers already qualified straight to next Saturday’s final at Wantage Road, Northampton.

Nat Sciver had celebrated her marriage to Katherine Brunt with a classy fifty in her first match since the couple’s nuptials – as Diamonds set 141 in a game they needed to win to hold any hope of progressing.

But Wyatt and Adams knocked off the runs with 10 balls to spare to celebrate a six-wicket victory and gain atonement for losing out to the Diamonds in last year’s Eliminator.

Wyatt was ostentatious. First ball: cut forcefully. Second ball: driven square with power. Fourth ball: advance and splice over point. Sixth ball: smashed over cover. Seventh ball: guided down to the third ropes. All five balls went to the boundary as the experienced batter rushed to 21 in seven balls.

She used Sciver’s pace to find fours on either side of the wicket, but her fun ended in the fourth over when she anticlimactically cut Katie Levick to point. The devastating damage of 35 from 16 balls had been done.

Georgia Adams was given two lives – a steepling chance dropped and then a missed stumped – during a scratchy start to her innings, while Ella McCaughan was also twice put down.

Adams struck herself into form with a straight six shadowed by three languid swings to the boundary in the following five balls. She was dropped again but made sure Vipers’ chase was in complete control.

Her luck ran out when she was caught at square leg before Charlie Dean was caught and bowled two balls later. But McCaughan and Freya Kemp knocked off the final 16 runs in front of 2,400 spectators at the Ageas Bowl.

Earlier, having been asked to bowl, Vipers’ Dean took her competition tally to 10 wickets as she pinched the early wickets of Bess Heath and Stere Kalis. The off-spinner returned figures of two for 24.

Sciver largely went under the radar as she quietly crept her score upwards. Her first three boundaries were all helped around the corner, before finally showing her more usual bombast by powering through midwicket.

She unleashed herself with back-to-back fours off England hopeful Lauren Bell – firstly straight and then freeing her arms through point. A superb scoop took her boundary count to seven as she reached a half-century in 37 balls before she was run out by Maia Bouchier’s direct hit.

Armitage was also circumspect, punishing width and shortness with disdain, during her 69-run stand with Sciver. She ended up unbeaten on 48 as Diamonds finished up on 141 for four – with 15 coming off the 20th over.

 

Central Sparks v Western Storm (Worcester)

Central Sparks are through to finals day in the Charlotte Edwards Cup despite losing by seven wickets to Western Storm in their final Group B game by seven wickets to Western Storm at New Road, Worcester.

 

The Sparks have qualify for finals day at Northampton next Saturday even if they lose top spot to South East Stars, who play tomorrow, as they are the best second placed team

They have won four of their six group games.

England keeper-batter Amy Jones top scored for the home side with 63 from 46 balls with nine fours.

It was her third fifty in six innings for the Sparks and she is now the leading scorer in the 2022 competition with 245 runs at a strike rate of 141.61.

But Spinners Claire Nicholas and Sophia Smale had joint figures of 8-0-39-3 to help restrict the Sparks total to a gettable 134-4.

Worcester born Georgia Hennessey, with an unbeaten 47 off 45 balls, and some late hitting by Dani Gibson saw the Storm to victory with seven balls to spare.

The Sparks elected to bat on the same hybrid wicket used for yesterday evening’s Vitality Blast  match between Worcestershire Rapids and Birmingham Bears which produced over 400 runs.

They suffered an early setback when Izzy Wong holed out to mid on in the second over, from Dani Gibson.

The first boundary was not struck until the fourth over when Eve Jones lofted Gibson to the cover boundary.

But her second wicket partnership with Amy Jones gradually flourished and added 65 in 9.1 overs.

Smale broke the stand when Eve Jones went for a mighty blow and was bowled for 27 with the total 70-2 in the 11th over.

Amy Jones reached an excellent half century from 40 balls when she swept Gibson for her seventh boundary

Her classy effort came to an end when she attempted a hit over mid wicket and was also bowled.

Abigail Freeborn struck the only six of the innings over long off against Georgia Hennessy before being stumped off Nicholas in the penultimate over.

Fi Morris got the Storm innings off to an ideal start with two boundaries in an opening over from Grace Potts costing 13 runs.

Morris was then bowled by a no ball from the first delivery by Wong but failed to take advantage and was caught at point in Potts’ third over.

Emily Arlott came into the attack and had Sophie Luff caught behind but Hennessy and Fran Wilson added 57 in 8.1 overs.

Eve Jones took a fine catch running back from mid off to break the stand by dismissing Wilson off Emily Arlott.

But Gibson came in to strike an unbeaten 24 off just 14 balls including a huge six over mid wicket off Liz Russell and settle the issue.